The Gulf of Mexico is an ideal fishing ground. The Gulf Stream, wide continental margin, and productive estuaries and protected bays have kept fishing active in the Gulf since prehistoric times, with Native Americans and later European settlers taking advantage of the region’s natural abundance.

Fishing played an early role in European settlement of the Gulf. In 1559 Tristán de Luna and 1,500 Spanish settlers arrived in Pensacola, Florida where they established the first European settlement in what is now the United States. French, English and Spanish explorers continued establishing small coastal settlements along the Gulf of Mexico through the 17th and 18th centuries.

Fishing remained a local subsistence effort during those times, but the bountiful marine resources of the Gulf did not go unnoticed. The Gulf of Mexico has an abundance of commercially caught species including: shellfish, groupers, snappers, triggerfish, jacks, mackerels, cobia, mullet, tuna, and more. A British official, George Johnstone wrote: “all the Bays and Lagoons are full of the best and most delicious kinds of Fish…a ship in a few days may catch her lading of Groupers, Snappers, Brim….[1]”.

As populations increased along the Gulf coast, so did the intensity of fishing efforts. Local fishing economies sprang up around population centers such as Pensacola, Florida; New Orleans, Louisiana; and Mobile, Alabama. In the early half of the 19th century experienced fishermen from the Northeastern United States made their way down the Atlantic seaboard to salvage wrecks in the Caribbean, where they earned extra money during the dangerous New England winters.

Some of these men continued around Florida and up the Gulf coast where they established fishing camps. They brought with them sloops and schooners[2]. These vessels were equipped with live wells able to hold 5,000-6,000 pounds (2,268-2,721.6 kilograms) in catch and were affectionately nicknamed “smacks” because of the sound of water in the live wells hitting the hull[3]. During this time fish were caught using handlines or nets.

The commercial fishing industry of the Gulf of Mexico stalled during the Civil War along with the rest of the South’s economy. After the war, the Gulf commercial fishing industry resumed its pattern of steady growth, largely due to technological advances that continued in to the 20th century.

One key advance was the increased availability of local sources of ice. Up until the end of the 19th century, ice had to be brought by schooners from Maine. But by 1895, ice plants in the south began to commercially produce ice than the cost to ship the ice from the north. Many fishermen switched from using live wells to packing their catch in ice for transport, which provided a better product for their inland customers [4]. The availability of cheap ice coupled with the expanding reach of America’s rail system allowed commercial fishermen to provide their catch to more customers further inland.

Fishermen were also able to access and catch more fish with the invention of the internal combustion engine, early fathometers, and hand-powered reels, which were used almost exclusively by the 1920s. This helped foster further growth of the Gulf of Mexico commercial fishing industry.

In the years following World War I and leading up to World War II, wartime innovation spurred the invention of fiberglass and nylon. Fiberglass boats, nylon fishing line, and synthetic fiber nets were readily available to commercial fishermen in the years following World War II.

The efficiency of the Gulf’s commercial fleets continued to increase into the 20th century. After the war, the demand for fish increased as well. With a growing economy,demand for Gulf seafood grew along the coast and inland. GPS, Sonar, Radar and mechanized reel winches and hydraulic systems continued to improve the technical efficiency of fishing fleets throughout the Gulf.

[1] George Johnstone to the Board of Trade, November 9, 1764, Colonial Office 5/574 Papers: 134, University Archives and West Florida History Center, University of West Florida, Pensacola, FL.